1. Field
Apparatus and methods described in this document relate to electronic circuit designs. More specifically, the apparatus and methods relate to vector quantizers.
2. Background
Digital-to-analog converters (DACs) are widely used in communication systems and in many other applications. In communication systems, DACs may be used to modulate an analog waveform with information carried or generated in digital form. Oversampling and quantization noise shaping techniques may be employed together with DACs to perform data conversion. Advantageously, such techniques may be implemented in highly-integrated digital circuitry.
Size, speed, cost, and power consumption are important performance criteria in many applications, and especially in battery-powered portable and mobile applications. Therefore, a need exists for smaller, faster, less costly, and less power-hungry DACs, as well as for methods for operating such DACs and memories storing code of steps of the methods. A need further exists for improved DACs that implement vector quantization and spectral shaping, without excessive complexity or power consumption.